(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a natural coffee substitute.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
As is well known, coffee is prepared from roasting coffee beans to a dark roast colour, with the beans thereafter being ground to provide what is commonly referred to as fresh roast and ground coffee. Because of the special climate conditions for growing of coffee, Canada, the United States and many other colder climates of the world are totally dependent upon imports for their source of coffee. This dependency upon importations has made the price of coffee fluctuate greatly depending upon the availability of imported coffee beans, such conditions as government stability in the exporting countries, and economically motivated export policies from the coffee growing countries. This increased cost of coffee in recent times has become a financial burden for coffee drinkers and those institutional users, e.g., stores, restaurants and office coffee service groups. There is, therefore, a need for an economical coffee product at prices only a fraction of the present prices.
Coffee is used extensively as a beverage and as a flavouring for various food products. Caffeine in coffee is a stimulant and is objectionable if consumed in excessive quantities and frequently is objectionable if consumed in normal quantities by persons afflicted with heart disease. Doctors frequently request patients not to use coffee or to use it in small quantities. Since coffee is habit-forming, it is difficult for the patients to comply. Coffee, by reason of its stimulating nature, frequently causes insomnia when consumed at night.
Numerous attempts have been made to find a substitute for coffee which does not contain caffeine. Generally, materials of vegetable origin modified by roasting have been employed for such purposes. One such product known by the trade mark POSTUM is made from wheat, bran and molasses, and has been sold in large quantities for many years. Other products, e.g., that known by the trade mark SANKA, utilize coffee but remove substantially all of the caffeine from it. Such products simulate coffee but there is a substantial difference in their taste and aroma and in the taste and aroma of real coffee.
Another typical commercial coffee surrogate is a roasted blend of molasses and/or sucrose and cereal grains, e.g., wheat and/or barley, the molten mixture being heated to the carmelization temperature typically in the neighbourhood of 375.degree. F. or slightly thereabove to develop flavour. The flavour of this product is characteristicly bitter and acidic. Among many coffee and non-coffee users, the flavour is not preferred.
Other coffee substitutes which are in the cold water soluble or hot water soluble form are aqueous extracts of the toasted mixture which are thereafter dried as by vacuum drying, during which drying a moderate amount of flavour alteration may also occur incident to dehydration. Such extracts also are characterized by an acidic bitter principle in beverage flavour.
Other prior art emphasizes the use of coffee substitutes, e.g., roasted garbanzo beans, barley, chicory or wheat, alone or as additions to coffee. The mixed components tend to separate in the can during transport. Accordingly, there is a lack of uniformity in the taste of the beverage brewed from such commercially available coffee with substitutes. Also, these substitutes usually have only marginal appearance of real roasted and ground coffee.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,158,485 issued Nov. 24, 1964 to V. De Santa Luce et al provides a food product containing a coffee substitute which comprises essentially the combination of a liquid mix derived from the vines of tomatoes and a liquid mix derived from dandelions.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,966,995 issued June 29, 1976 to R. A. Workman provides a material useful for brewing a beverage simulating coffee comprising the outer zone or cortex of carrot root subdivided and roasted to a dark brown colour and essentially devoid of the wood or pith of the core of the carrot root, colour and odour.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,022,916 issued May 10, 1977 to D. J. LaTour provides a process for preparing a coffee-substituted beverage comprising the steps of: (a) roasting a mixture of a cereal and a polysaccharide at a temperature above 375.degree. F. and for a period between 15 and 200 minutes; (b) aqueously extracting the roasted mixture of step (a); (c) drying the aqueous extract to a moisture content of about 2%; (d) blending the dried extract with from 5 to 40% finely divided roasted carob seed; (e) agglomerating the blend of step (d) by means of steam until an agglomerate is produced, the agglomerate having a moisture content of between 3 and 5.5% and a bulk density of from 0.25 to 0.33 grams per cc; and (f) further drying the agglomerate to a moisture content of 1 to 3%.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,187,324 patented Feb. 5, 1980 by Shirboun provides a coffee-like beverage product prepared solely from soybeans. By the combination of conditions employed, the result is a ground and roasted soybean product which can be substituted for coffee, and which tastes and appears remarkably like coffee. The process involves removing most of the oil from green soybeans, crushing the green soybeans, grinding the crushed green soybeans, and thereafter roasting them.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,188,409 issued Feb. 12, 1980 to C. Kay provides a granular product to be used for brewing a high yield; coffee testing beverage, formed of coffee flavoured extract from pulverized roasted and ground coffee impregnated into and coated onto edible nut shell particles, utilizing only a fraction of roasted and ground coffee of that normally necessary to produce comparable beverage yields.